Case Study
by Idrelle Miocovani
Summary: Snapshots from fifty different cases, situations or days in the life of one Sherlock Holmes.


**A/N: **50 Sentences Challenge, where you write, well, fifty sentences based on prompts. Many thanks to the gracious and lovely **Mira_Jade** for giving me my prompts!

Enjoy!

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**Case Study**

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**01. Gentleman **

"All right, Mr Holmes," she says when he opens the door for her, "you're being blatantly nice today – what do you want?"

**02. Gossamer **

Sherlock thinks he has the answer – he can see it right there, in his mind's eye – but then someone comes barrelling up the stairs, his concentration snaps and the answer simply floats away, as if it was never there at all.

**03. Enigma **

"So," she says, smirking as she taps her fingers on the table, "if you're not interested in women and you're not gay, then what are you?"

**04. Divinity **

If there is such a thing as religion solely for detectives, then deduction would be its faith and Sherlock Holmes would be a god.

**05. Insipid**

The case file glares at him from across the room – until he has the brilliant idea of throwing a dart at it to quiet its complaints.

**06. Ensnare **

It has always been a game, right from the start: plan the perfect crime and wait for Sherlock Holmes to come calling because he just can't resist a good mystery.

**07. Split **

"You know, I thought I had the one perfect, _simple _answer to this until you come in here and throw a load of variables in my face and now I don't know what to think!"

**08. Exist**

For every clever crime that is committed, there will always be a genius (usually one Sherlock Holmes) working to unravel it – otherwise the delicate balance by which the world works would not exist.

**09. Claim **

"Ever since that thing with the shoe," Lestrade says gruffly, "I don't know if you're just making it up with a few lucky guesses or if I should just believe you, no matter how mad things get!"

**10. Fugue**

He's up at three o'clock in the morning playing the violin when he comes to the conclusion that in situations where the question is unavoidable, the fugue would be a good way to explain how his mind works.

**11. Dry **

"You do realise what it means for you if this ends up being dry?" Sherlock asks, casually smiling as he holds up his wine glass and clinks it with hers.

**12. Intimacy **

He has absolutely no desire to participate in society the way ordinary people do; however, that does not mean that he cannot understand it – it would be completely counter-productive not to have an intimate relationship with the world.

**13. Fair **

"Well… that's just… not… _fair!"_ he splutters when John gives him the quick and easy solution to the problem Sherlock has been working on for an hour.

**14. Flare **

"Whatever you do," John says, watching Sherlock cautiously from a safe distance, _"do not_ drop the match on that."

**15. Task**

The newspapers make his work easy – these days, he only has to glance at the front page and he has his next job.

**16. Boulevard **

There are many roads in life and some are much prettier than others; however, after seeing a particularly gruesome triple homicide take place on a rather lavish London boulevard, he thinks that some of society's typical metaphors are becoming wildly inaccurate.

**17. Untold **

Over years of interesting incidents that most would label either awkward or embarrassing, he's beginning to learn the value of not voicing every thought that passes through his remarkable mind.

**18. Sultry **

"I'm here to talk to you about Jordan Graham – and no, that is not going to work on me," he adds, casually raising an eyebrow at the suggestive dance moves the skimpily dressed girl was attempting to perform.

**19. Dare **

"This is the last time I'm _ever_ taking you up on a dare," John mutters, soaked to the bone as he sits on the roof in the pouring rain.

**20. Follow**

"Oh!" he exclaims, his eyes lighting up as an idea occurs to him – but unfortunately, no one can follow.

**21. Gamble **

"Don't blame me for this," Sherlock snaps, "you have to take chances every now and then – besides, if _you_ had gone left like I told you, then maybe _you_ would have caught him!"

**22. Solitude **

Even though he is grateful for the chance to _think, _the silence in 221B Baker Street is nearly overwhelming and he finds himself hoping that John would come back soon.

**23. Temperamental **

"Isn't that a little childish of you?" John asks as Sherlock tramps around the flat in his pyjamas, mourning the lack of genius criminal activity.

**24. Temptation **

After ignoring the police for a week (they were getting on his nerves), he suddenly finds that he can't go five minutes without checking his phone for pleading messages from Lestrade – and then he has to remind himself why he's ignoring them in the first place.

**25. Leave**

"Fine," Sherlock says sharply, stalking away, "if you don't believe what I've said, then put your team together and see how far you can get without me!"

**26. Fantasy **

On comfortable afternoons, Molly sometimes finds herself with her head resting on her desk and a dreamy smile on her face – and then _he_ comes striding purposefully into her office to ask for a favour and she remembers that it was strictly a dream.

**27. Slay **

The day they get caught by the gang they are tailing is the day John tells himself that jokes and homicides should not mix, despite their usual inclinations.

**28. Sleigh **

"I always knew Father Christmas wasn't real and I still fail to see why this myth continues to perpetuate itself around intelligent families," Sherlock says as he examines the blood-stained sleigh shoved into the snow bank.

**29. Swimming **

Being a friend of Sherlock Holmes is like swimming against a strong current – if you give up, you get swept away.

**30. Daybreak**

"Why does doing research for _your_ bloody cases always make me late for work?" John groans as the sun shines through a gap in the drawing room curtains.

**31. Nightfall **

"This shouldn't take too long," Sherlock says, wheeling several large crates into the already crate-filled room, "but if it does, no matter – the night's only begun!"

**32. Smother **

As they walk down the busy street, John does his best to ignore Sherlock's ramblings, but it quickly becomes too much: "Look, can you just _not_ talk for a moment, please?"

**33. Burden **

"Well, I can't say that we haven't had this happen before," John says as he and Sarah glance around the trashed flat.

**34. Bashful **

"Molly, I need to know if Marcus Walker is on your list for today – oh… I saw her five seconds ago, where did she disappear to?"

**35. Cease**

Lestrade snatches the phone from Donovan's hands and types in the message: STOP DOING THAT, SHERLOCK, OR I'LL ARREST YOU FOR HARRASSMENT AND WASTING POLICE TIME.

**36. Tide **

"There is a tide in the affairs of Sherlock Holmes," Moriarty murmurs, his eyes gleaming in the light of his computer screen.

**37. Iris **

"I can see you think it's very pretty," Sherlock says, taking the photo from her, "but I'm not particularly interested in rainbows – wait… oh… now _that_ certainly has nothing to do with rainbows…"

**38. Pout **

"As always, your behaviour is most tiresome, Sherlock," Mycroft says, observing his glowering brother from his comfortable chair.

**39. Tale **

"… and that is why John's blogs are completely fictional," Sherlock finishes, finally drawing pausing to draw breath.

**40. Twist**

"Well, I can't say I saw that coming," John says, watching as his friend's photo was broadcasted all over the news.

**41. Cinder **

"I trust you'll remind your colleagues to never underestimate the power of a glass slipper again," Sherlock tells Lestrade as he snaps his torn and muddied copy of _Cinderella_ shut.

**42. Silhouette **

"Well, there is something dreadfully odd about that," Sherlock says, frowning as he stares at the window with the person-shaped hole.

**43. Sanction **

"Please stop waving that paperwork in my face," he snaps, "I don't _want_ to be assigned to a job, I do this for my own merit – why can't you ever understand that?"

**44. Palm **

John takes one look at the holes in the drawing room wall, glances at Sherlock's immobile form, and then slaps himself on the forehead.

**45. Hush**

"Sometimes I wish the world would stop thinking," he says, throwing himself into a chair, "because it can be bloody noisy some days!"

**46. Sense **

"I keep telling you there's nothing here," she says, folding her arms as she watches him examine the crime scene, "but I can see your deduction senses are tingling."

**47. Spoils **

"Now I understand why you need a flatmate," John grumbles, staring at the rotten food stuffed into all corners of the fridge, "because, obviously, there's no way you'll ever learn to look after yourself like a normal human being."

**48. Fear **

"You can't scare me," Sherlock scoffs at the looming figure in the dark, "fear is both entirely irrational and perfectly understandable – do you think _I_ can be easily crippled by it?"

**49. Entity **

"You're not normal," the young man spits at Sherlock, struggling against the officers trying to handcuff him, "you're… you're a thing – has anyone told you that?"

**50. Linger**

He has reprimanded John so many times for chronicling their adventures online, but despite his dubious attitude towards the blogs, part of him delights in knowing that a record of his brilliance will live on in the Internet should something happen to him.

_fin_


End file.
